Kids say the darndest things....

My post will be short today. The twins have been cracking me up with the things they have been saying lately and I had to record some of it, for posterity sake. (Sorry to all of you readers who have seen these comments on my facebook page, consider it a rerun.)

So today, me and the twins are at the store. I was looking for some night lights in the home improvement area at Wal-Mart and Gavin, pointing at all the toilet seats hanging up on the wall, and said "mom, are those the toilet plates?". It actually took me a minuet for it to register in my brain, and when I saw him looking at the toilet seats I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Earlier on this morning, they were both sitting here watching Sleeping Beauty. It was at the part where Aurora is in the forest singing to herself. I joined in and started singing with her. Isabelle started crying and covering her ears. Writhing on the floor like she was in pain. She was crying, "stop, Mommy, Stop!". When I asked her why I needed to stop, she said "because I don't like it, its hurting my ears!". I guess I need a few voice lessons.

Last night, I was doing the bedtime routine. Scott is out of town and so I do things a little differently when hes gone. We will usually divide and conquer the kids at bedtime, each putting our share of them to bed. Our routine is to say a prayer with each of them and sing a song to each of them. Since I am the only one here, I decided instead of singing four separate times, we could just kneel in family prayer, together and then I would sing one song to all of them at the same time. The idea went over OK, although Isabelle thought it was family night and started leading the music and singing along. I shuffled them all up to bed and it came to Gavin's turn.
He took my hand as I laid him down then I gave him his two butterfly kisses, and an Eskimo kiss and numerous other pecks on the cheek, and a tickle under the neck, as is customary. When I started to get up he squeezed my hand and said, "mom, you need to sing me a closing song." That kid melts me in my tracks. I couldn't deny him.

I know I sometimes complain that it is hard, and I get irritated when they are all so needy. But there is nothing in this world that is more meaningful to me than my darling kids. Apart from my husband and God of course. But they are all pretty equal.
I feel so unbelievably blessed with every day I am allowed to be here with them. I know I will always be their mom, even in Heaven and the worlds to come. But do you really think there will be "toilet plates" there? Only those precious moments, can be shared here. I'm sure the moments we will share in the Eternities will not compare, but I will have these ones that will always be endearing and precious to me.

Facing my fears...

So Scott is the Exec. Secretary for the bishop, one of his duties is to assign people to speak during sacrament meeting. I listen to him do it every week and I'm even a bit surprised when people actually say no.
Scott knows how I feel about speaking in public anywhere. It is no secret that it terrifies me to the core. I cant even get up and bear my testimony. Its not that I don't want to, but the fear, keeps me glued to my seat. I really really hate public speaking. Just thinking about it now is giving me butterflies and anxiety.
So last week, Scott was going through his list of potential speakers and calling them. He hung up the phone and complained that he couldn't find anyone to do it.
I totally knew it was coming....sooner or later, it would be my turn. He started sweet talking me and trying to convince me that it will be easy and the best week to do it. I asked him what it would be about and he said the Temple. I took my mental inventory of what I could say about the temple and could sum it up in about two sentences. I'm such a novice at the Temple! For SOME UNKNOWN REASON I said yes.
Now I'm nervous and contemplating what I will talk about. If you told me to write a story about the temple, no problem, done. But standing up there and speaking about it for 12 minuets!! What can I say that will last that long???
A friend was saying I should stand up and talk about the Twilight Saga and how it parallels our views on eternal life. I was laughing, because I seriously considered that for a second.
Another friend suggested just telling what the Temple means to me. I can do that too, but as I sit down to write my talk, it just turns into a story. I guess that's all I know. I might as well just read my story to the congregation and hope they enjoy it. I can't see myself getting up there and preaching a sermon about how to be temple worthy. Its just not me.
Tomorrow I will visit the temple in the hopes that I will get some divine epiphany.
Wish me luck, hopefully I wont pass out on the stand...
Thanks a lot Honey, I owe ya one...

Thank You Easter Bunny!

For Easter every year we load up the Suburban and head to Arkansas. We go to Greer's Ferry Lake and stay in a condo there on the water. We love it and it has become a fun tradition. This year was no different full of fun and surprises a ghost, and good family get-togethers. The night we got there the rain set in and there was even some severe weather and a tornado. Though luckily it wasn't where we were or any of the family was.
We arrived on Thursday and stayed through Monday so the girls were happy to miss a little school. I normally hate to do that, but I let them sluff once a year for family things.
On our second night in the condo around 2:30 in the morning, Kylie taps on my shoulder and tells me that Gavin is upstairs crying. So I go upstairs and take care of him and tuck them both back in bed, then return to my bed. What seems like about 15 minuets later, I hear a kid standing at the door to our room whispering "mom". I sit up and look around and there was no one there. So I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep. A couple minuets later I hear it again, only this time it is right next to me in between me and Scott in the bed. A voice whispering "mom" this one was a little louder and right in front of my face! I sat up and said "WHAT". Scott sits up and askes what I'm doing. I told him that there was a kid up and they were calling me. Only there was no one there! I made him go upstairs and check on the kids. He said they were all sound asleep. Then I SWEAR that I felt something press on the blankets by my foot. It felt as though there was someone climbing onto the bed! I was so freaked out by this point that I couldn't go back to sleep. I kept telling Scott I was sure I heard someone say "mom". He totally didn't believe me and rolled over and went back to sleep! So I laid there in bed waiting for the ghost of a child to materialize in my hotel room.
After that night I didn't have anymore ghostly experiences. But it was still spooky! Though it has to be said that even though I was scared, I didn't feel like it was a sinister presence. It was mostly scary because I couldn't see anything!
The rest of the trip was fun and really laid back. We just hung out with the family and went Easter egg hunting. We went bowling one night too and that was super fun. The twins especially loved it and Bailey even got a strike! Here are a few pictures of our adventures, (minus the ghost pictures) and I don't have the bowling pictures done, I took them with a film camera and need to develop those.
The kids taking the customary bath in the whirlpool tub. The tub is surrounded by mirrors and the kids love to look in them and see the million reflections reaching to eternity.
Bailey and Kylie "workin it" with the camera, out on a nature hike with Scott.
.The kids outside of grandmas house. These pink bushes are all over everywhere. There are tons of flowers in Arkansas in the spring. Its really pretty.
The whole fam damily. Well not quite, but most of it. This was Easter Day.

Allie's Top Ten....

Top Ten clues for mom that the twins need some serious attention:

#10. You find the dog covered with blankets and stuck in her kennel with toys and a jacket.

#9. You find all the dog food from said dog in the pooches water bowl, soaking.

#8. You hear running water, and know that you didn't turn on any yourself.

#7. You hear movies start to play in the DVD player that you were SURE were on the very top shelf of the book case.

#6. You find every item of clothing in every drawer sprawled across the floor.

#5. You step in something wet on the playroom floor.

#4. You then find all the toy kitchen dishes full of water.

#3. You discover every single wipe in a brand new box taken out, unfolded and used to clean up said water.

#2. You find the entire roll of toilet paper unrolled in every bathroom.

#1. You go into the bathroom to clean up toilet paper mess and find that the boy twin, who is potty training needs some lessons on aiming. There is pee all over the floor around the toilet and nothing inside the toilet.

Yep and its only 10:30 am.....